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Cuisine

Grilled Portabella Burger

Served on a made-from-scratch wheat bun with seared baby corn.

Seasoned with apple-wood smoked salt and olive oil.

 

Quilt: coutoure is more than clothes

Quilt: coutoure is more than clothes

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At the request of a dear friend, I set out to design a quilt that reflected people, places and times in someone's life.

First sketch:

Sample for approval:

All of the fabric was gathered from friends and family:

Then construction began - slow but steady work:

Finally, the core was finished:

The border was added and final asyembly was complete!

I got to use my new, custom printed jLAmode tags:

The final product:

  • About 35 hours of construction (even with someone else cutting the fabric into strips)
  • 114 Linear Feet of fabric strips
  • 38 rows

Quilt making is massively time consuming, but it’s rewarding.

Avocado Salsa

Avocados are amazing! To take it to a new dimension, I added corn, tomatoes and olives and salt. This builds on the mellow avocado flavour a complex and savoury dimension.

This recipe works best with avocados that are almost fully ripe. They shouldn't be plasticky or mushy.

Southern Fried Okra

So many people hate okra.  Honestly, after seeing the way okra is prepared and served at restaurants, I would hate it too.  So, I'll show you how to make a proper okra dish with a Italian twist.

  1. slice the okra in chunks, nearly cube shaped
  2. prepare an egg wash with egg whites, a smidgen of water, Greek youghurt and truffle salt
  3. saturate the okra with the egg wash and then bread in cornmeal
  4. fry over medium heat until golden brown

Fried okra, served here with spicy seared green beans and ranch mashed yams.

For dessert, pure, unadulterated chilled cantaloupe.

 

Dolmas

I harvested the grape leaves from my vines. The filling contains:

  • turmeric rice
  • sautéed tofu with onions
  • olive oil
  • truffle salt

Served with grilled green beans and fresh cherry tomatoes.

Pasta Fresca

I just got to try my new pasta attachments.

Make the dough and let it rest:

This is a buckwheat and semolina dough.

Then roll it to the desired thickness:

Then cut as desired - this is a fettuccine:

Start the water boiling and lay the pasta aside - boil when ready.  Then drain, rinse and keep warm (for no more than 10 minutes):

Prepare the fresh veg:

  • basil
  • parsley
  • onions
  • cayenne
  • oregano
  • tomatoes

Mince the herbs and pepper:

Marinate with Italian salad dressing:

Sweat the herbs and onion in olive oil with a dash of salt.  Add toasted pine nuts to the mix:

Turn off the heat and add the tomatoes.  You don't want to cook them, just allow them to soften slightly:

Add ripe green olives (not the pickled variety) and julienned green peppers:

Pasta Fresca, served with sauteed green beans and (veggie) sausage.

 

Home Grown Salsa

A nice light side dish or appetizer:

Dice the tomatoes.  You may wish to blanch and peel them first, but it's also delicious with the skins.

Roast the corn and cut it from the cob.

Diced jalapeños

Mix in onions and salt. Serve with Geek youghurt - or leave it off for a purely vegan meal.

 

 

Filled Cherry Tomato hors d'oeuvres

With an abundance of cherry tomatoes, I decided to find a proper dish for them.

First, remove a slice from the top or the bottom.  Scoop out the guts and fill with the following:

  • greek youghurt and dill
  • corn
  • parsley
  • basil
  • slices of bell pepper

Mediterranean Grilled Tofu Sandwich

Marinate and grill extra firm tofu to desired colour.

This compilation includes:

  • fresh lettuce
  • fresh from the garden tomatoes
  • grilled bell pepper
  • feta & olive relish

Cantaloupe Sorbet

Start with a fresh, fragrant cantaloupe!  Your finished product will taste like the raw ingredient ;-)

Make sure the cantaloupe is semi-frozen or well chilled.  Then, blend with ice, a pinch of salt and a dash of sugar.  Make sure that the blender and serving dishes are very cold (store in the freezer for a few minutes prior to preparation) and be sure to serve promptly.

Served here with candied jasmine tea leaves (mint leaves are also a good choice).

Concept: Asymmetrical Henley

I designed this while in Switzerland.

A side buttoning henley constructed of slub knit cotton.

Mac and Cheese - Ghetto to Gourmet

I love the boxed mac and cheese!  Unfortunately, I feel like it's not very nutritious.

So, I added the following things:

  • greek youghurt
  • olive and/or macadamia nut and/or walnut oil
  • sautéed onions and shiitake mushrooms
  • fresh tomatoes
  • Irish cheese

Prepare the mac generally as directed, but substitute Greek youghurt + healthy oil for butter.

Sweat the diced onions and mushrooms.

Dice fresh tomatoes:

Stir it all together and let sit while still hot. Season with truffle salt and top with a nice sweet cheese - I used something Irish.

Broil or toast with a butane torch before serving.

 

Mocha Pie

Chocolate custard mix accompanied by espresso grind coffee beans.

I doctored the custard with corn starch, cocoa powder, vanilla, sugar, marshmallows and Greek youghurt.

Pour in to a crust and chill.  Top with whipped topping and cookie crumble.

Cookies and Cream

Easy to make!

  • sugar cookies
  • vanilla greek youghurt
  • fresh fruit

This is a fresh and tasty treat.  It replaces the typical sugar frosting with a fat free, but sweet, Greek youghurt.  Chose a relatively sweet and thin skinned fruit as a very tart and thick skinned fruit may harshly contrast on both dimensions.

 

Concept: Side Buttoning Shirt

I designed this while sitting on the front porch of St. Peters church in Rome:

Constructed of cotton-blend interlock

Tomato Blueberry Salad

Here in the US, it's our Independence Day! Here's a chilled dish that sports the nation's colors: Red, White and Blue

Ingredients:

  • cherry tomatoes
  • fresh blueberries
  • toasted pine nuts
  • dash of salt
  • slash of olive oil
  • smidgen of fresh basil

Happy Fourth!

Four-Month Potato Casserole

First, grow and dig potatoes: Approximately 3.999 months

Then clean and slice them thinly: 5 minutes (with the food processor)

Layer in a casserole dish, alternately with Greek youghurt (or sour cream), olive oil and salt.

Top it off with a smidgen of cheese - something rich and sweet, or something bold like chèvre.  Add chives or green onions before or after baking... or both.

Bake until done (cheat and microwave it for 5 minutes while the oven preheats).

Total time ~4 months

Tall Collar Dress Shirt

Tall collar dress shirt.  Kinda like Karl Lagerfeld wears, but not that... er... bold.

Construction:  Stretch cotton

Cornbread and Tomatoes

Garden fresh tomatoes with basil, served with homemade cornbread.

Sloppy Thai

I actually make this quite often, but I change it up each time. The main requirement is fresh vegetables - the rest can change based on your tastes.

This particular batch has:

  • rice noodles
  • coconut milk
  • curry paste
  • peanuts
  • seared tofu
  • carrots
  • peas
  • bamboo shoots
  • peppers
  • onions

It's quick, it's easy and it tastes amazing!